ALDI has announced that it is hitting the road again and looking forward to welcoming thousands of visitors to it's marquee at the National Ploughing Championships in Ratheniska, Co. Laois, which takes place from September 19th – 21st.
Over the course of the three-day festival, ALDI will present an action-packed programme with daily cooking demonstrations, musical performances, panel discussions and more. Plus, a number of special guests and well-known faces will be popping in throughout the festival with more details to be shared on ALDI’s social media channels each day!
Broadcaster Síle Seoige will serve as MC for the three days and will also host the semi-finals and final of the National Brown Bread Baking Competition, proudly sponsored by ALDI in conjunction with the National Ploughing Association and Irish Countrywomen’s Association. The competition will see a number of Ireland’s top amateur brown bread bakers go head-to-head in a live final for the chance to win €15,000.
Additionally, the winner will see their brown bread stocked in all 160 ALDI stores nationwide for the next year.
Music and entertainment will be provided by country music sensation Mike Denver with the singer and his band set to rock the marquee and get punters jiving with a series of performances over the three days.
Foodies are in for a treat with ALDI set to host a series of daily cooking demonstrations featuring some of ALDI’s amazing suppliers. ALDI is proud to support suppliers and producers from all over Ireland and looks forward to showcasing products from their award-winning range at this year’s festival.
Elsewhere, Roz Purcell will be on hand to announce the winners of this year’s Grow with ALDI competition. The lucky winners will receive contracts to have their products stocked in ALDI stores nationwide, underlining ALDI’s commitment to championing the best of Irish food and drink. Undertaken in partnership with Bord Bia and Invest NI, Grow with ALDI is a supplier development programme that sees ALDI offer mentorship and guidance to small independent food and drink suppliers to help them grow their business.
ALDI is also proud to host a Women in Farming panel discussion with farmers and social media sensations Karen Moynihan, Aoife Mullen, Lauren Ennis and Sophie Bell set to chat about life on the farm, becoming ‘agri-influencers’, and the changing face of agriculture in Ireland.
Visitors can also expect special appearances from social media sensations, Rory’s Stories and Tadhg & Derry Fleming as well as Irish rugby star Beibhinn Parsons and brand new Mamia & Me host Jen Hogan!
See below for details of events taking place in the ALDI marquee at the 92nd National PloughingChampionships:
• Day 1: This year's festivities get off to a flying start with Virgin Media’s Ireland AM broadcasting live from ALDI’s marquee. This will be followed by the first of the National Brown Bread Baking semi-finals with regional winners going head-to-head to see who can bake the best brown bread in Ireland. Roz Purcell will also be on hand to help announce the winners of this year’s Grow with ALDI competition. Mamia & Me host Jen Hogan will make a special appearance. There will be daily cooking demonstrations featuring ALDI suppliers while country star Mike Denver will treat audiences to performances each day. All that and resident MC Síle Seoige will be giving away ALDI Gift Cards to some lucky marquee visitors!
• Day 2: The day will start with Ireland AM broadcasting live from the ALDI marquee. Four Irish female farmers - Karen Moynihan, Aoife Mullen, Sophie Bell, Lauren Ennis - will lead what promises to be a fascinating panel discussion around Women in Farming. The second semi-final in the National Brown Bread Baking Competition will take place with competitors hoping to progress to the final while there will be more cooking demos, musical performances and giveaways. Plus, there will be special appearances from some of Ireland’s most popular social media personalities, including Tadhg & Derry Fleming and Rory’s Stories, as well as Irish rugby star Beibhinn Parsons.
• Day 3: The third and final day will see the winner of this year’s National Brown Bread Baking competition crowned with this year’s star baker walking away with an incredible €15,000 and the opportunity to have their brown bread stocked in ALDI stores nationwide. Mike Denver will be ‘keeping her lit’ with more musical performances while there will be cooking demonstrations and exciting ALDI gift card giveaways!
Speaking about this year’s festival, ALDI’s Group Buying Director, John Curtin said: “Everyone at ALDI is delighted to be venturing back down to the National Ploughing Championships. At one of the standout events on the Irish calendar, we cannot wait to welcome visitors back to the marquee to enjoy our specially curated programme with 30 of our Irish suppliers, as well as cooking demonstrations, the finals of the Brown Bread competition in association with the NPA and the ICA, entertainment, and much more.”
“In particular, we are excited to reveal the winners of this year’s Grow with ALDI programme. At ALDI, we are proud to support small Irish producers and remain committed to unearthing exciting new food and drink products to share with our customers. We look forward to using our incredible platform at the National Ploughing Championships to showcase the amazing range of Irish products available every day in ALDI stores nationwide. See you at the Ploughing!”
Anna May McHugh, Managing Director of the National Ploughing Championships, added, “We are delighted to welcome ALDI back to this year’s National Ploughing Championships and are especially thrilled to partner again with ALDI and the ICA on the National Brown Bread Baking Competition. I am already looking forward to seeing what this year’s bakers whip up. We can’t wait to welcome everyone back to Ratheniska for what promises to be another brilliant festival for the whole family to enjoy.”
From food and music to fascinating chats and exciting giveaways, you’ll find it all at the ALDI marquee, located at Block 1 Row 23 Stand Number 352.
For more information, please visit www.aldi.ie.
Slán go fóill.